Templeton Rye Starts Work On New Commercial Distillery

Introduced in 2006, Templeton Rye was one of the early examples of a whiskey company bottling Rye whiskey sourced from the 95% Rye stock of MGP in Indiana. The company founders marketed their product behind the authentic stories of their hometown’s Prohibition bootlegging legacy, and the wide gap between that marketing and the actual source of their whiskey soon made them the main target for the complaints of deception that raged in whiskey nerd circles just a few years ago.

At the heart of those complaints was that Templeton did their best to fudge that they weren’t making their own whiskey. The distillery reportedly had a small still at their Templeton facility, used to show and to make small runs of product for local release, but for a decade there was no sign they were going to transition from bottler to micro-distiller.

Until now. Templeton Rye’s broke ground last week on their new home, which will consist of a 34,500 square feet distillery and an aging warehouse at its current 20-acre facility in the town of Templeton. The project not only increases the brand’s investment in its namesake town but also keeps with Templeton Rye’s long-standing tradition of giving back to the community. The distillery will be able to produce 500,000 proof gallons of rye whiskey annually. They will also build an aging warehouse will be able to warehouse 40,000 barrels.

“We’re moving full-steam ahead. Our company is laser-focused on bringing the history and spirit of the community of Templeton, Iowa, to life through Templeton Rye whiskey,” said Keith Kerkhoff, Templeton Rye co-founder whose grandfather was an area bootlegger.